Bogaerts left strong impression on PawSox

PAWTUCKET -- As if there was any doubt, Gary DiSarcina would hear it from opposing third basemen when he was out coaching.

By TIM BRITTON

PAWTUCKET - As if there was any doubt, Gary DiSarcina would hear it from opposing third basemen when he was coaching third base.

"You hear some third basemen who are just, 'Wow. I can't believe how good this kid is here,'." DiSarcina said Monday.

"This kid" is Xander Bogaerts and the verb has to be put in the past tense now that Bogaerts has been promoted from Triple-A Pawtucket to the majors.

Although Bogaerts was with the PawSox for barely two months, the shortstop/third baseman has left a strong impression on his manager, his teammates and, apparently, the third basemen of the International League.

"For me, he's kind of the perfect storm of a hitter - great bat speed, great athlete, he's got a great swing mechanically," said Alex Hassan, who spent the last few weeks hitting behind Bogaerts in the order. "Offensively, he's going to be really good. He's already good, but it's scary to think what he might do."

Hassan really liked Bogaerts' fundamentals at the plate.

"What I was most impressed with was his swing mechanics," Hassan said. "The physical tools, those are pretty impressive, too. But those are really obvious.

"Something that gets overlooked is how mechanically sound his swing is. He hits the ball more flush than probably anybody on the team. A lot of people say he's got great bat speed and fast-twitch muscles - which he does have, and those definitely help you - but his actual bat path and how his bat works, he's got really great direction. He doesn't side-spin it or top-spin it; it's flush. You see the balls that he hits; It's loud because it's flush."

"He was hitting the other night, and I was thinking, 'Where was I when I was 20 years old?'." DiSarcina said. "I was a junior in college, and I didn't know a damn thing about hitting. I just went up there and swung.

"He squares up to the plate really well. That's why you see him hit balls down the right-field line or to right-center. And not just hit them; he's driving balls the other way."

DiSarcina gave a lot of credit to hitting coach Dave Joppie for polishing some of the rougher edges in Bogaerts' approach. Hassan, himself owner of one of the keenest eyes at the plate in the entire organization, was taken aback by Bogaerts' plate discipline.

"One of the things I heard in spring training was that he wasn't very disciplined," Hassan said. "He was really good with the strike zone. Every once in a while, yeah, he'll chase, but so does everybody. As a whole, for 20 years old, he's pretty incredible."

Bogaerts has posted the highest walk rate of his career this season between Double-A Portland and Pawtucket, earning a free pass 12.2 percent of the time. (By comparison, David Ortiz has walked 12.4 percent of the time this season for the Red Sox.)

DiSarcina and Hassan both mentioned Angels superstar Mike Trout in discussing Bogaerts. DiSarcina worked with Trout in the Anaheim organization and Hassan played with him in the Arizona Fall League. Beyond their physical maturity at a young age, both Bogaerts and Trout possessed the right mindset to succeed at the majors.

"When I talk about Mike Trout, they have that same innocence, where it's like they're playing Wiffle Ball in the backyard," DiSarcina said. "What he does really good is he separates his at-bats. He won't take that poor at-bat into his next at-bat. He'll hunt a pitch, he'll learn. You'll see him take that breaking ball because now he's seen it, seen the rotation on it and how that pitcher throws it. He's really advanced with the mental side of it."

Bogaerts' ability to quickly move beyond an at-bat has helped prevent him from experiencing any prolonged slumps.

"I was joking around with him a couple of days ago, [asking] what is his longest slump? He said something like two or three days," said DiSarcina. "When he's done poorly, it's been in quick spurts. It's a quality not a lot of guys have."

Indeed, Bogaerts has gone hitless in three straight games just once this season - his last three games in Triple-A.

Hassan compared him to Trout, the kind of guy who shakes off an 0-for-4 with a smile on his face. Anthony Ranaudo, who has spent time with Bogaerts in Portland and Pawtucket, considers Bogaerts a "great teammate" in part because of his enthusiasm.

"He's just always having fun," said Ranaudo. "He's in here joking around with the guys. He keeps everyone loose, and he's always smiling."

DiSarcina thinks that will serve him well if and when he encounters scrutiny in Boston.

"You can't insulate him and you can't put him in a bubble, especially in this market," the manager said. "You have to trust in the work you put in."